Mayo pip Galway in thrilling finish

Mayo 0-12 Galway 1-8

Conor Mortimer won a 36th Connacht SFC title for Mayo with a stoppage time free at Castlebar.

A disappointing decider came to a gripping climax, with Michael Donnellan failing with a free kick chance to send the tie to a replay in front of a sell-out crowd of almost 35,000.

Mayo contrived to kick themselves out of it in the first half, with nine wides and at least two missed goal chances.

Despite enjoying less than ten per cent of possession, the Tribesmen opened up a two points lead through Joe Bergin and Padraig Joyce inside the opening 10 minutes, before Conor Mortimer finally opened Mayo's account from a free.

It was Mortimer who got in for a couple of goal opportunities. First his fisted effort was easily stopped by goalkeeper Brian O'Donoghue, and moments later, when O'Donoghue dropped Kieran McDonald's dropping delivery, the Mayo full forward got a hand in, but the ball trickled agonisingly along the goal line and somehow stayed out.

Having shot seven wides by this stage, Mickey Moran's men did begin to find the range, with McDonald drilling over a '45' and a free from 50 metres, and Mortimer thumping over a sublime long range effort.

It was Galway, however, who finished the half strongly, scors from Michael Meehan (2) and Sean Armstrong sending them in at the break with a 0-5 to 0-4 lead.

It was an amazing scoreline at that stage, considering the fact that Mayo had been almost totally dominant, and had won 13 kick-outs, thanks chiefly to Ronan McGarrity's dominance, to Galway's four.

The game finally spark into life when Matthew Clancy fisted a goal from substitute Damien Dunleavy's pass in the eight minutes into the second half.

And when Joyce added a point from a free, Galway lead by 1-7 to 0-6.

But Mayo responded with three more, the best of them fisted over by Billy Joe Padden to cap a delightful passing movement.

As the game slipped into its final 10 minutes, the Tribesmen were clinging on to a slender one point lead.

But substitute Kevin O'Neill fired over the equaliser three minutes from the end of normal time, and it was Mortimer who held his nerve to steer over a difficult 13 metre free from a tight angle.

Mayo: J Healy, D Geraghty, L O'Malley, K Higgins, D Heaney, J Nallen, P Gardiner, R McGarrity, P Harte (0-1), BJ Padden (0-1), G Brady (0-1), A Dillon (0-2, 2 frees), A Moran, C Mortimer (0-4, 2 frees), K McDonald (0-2, 1 free, 1 '45').

Subs: K O'Neill (0-1) for Moran, T Mortimer for Brady

Galway: B O'Donoghue, A Burke, F Hanley, D Burke, D Meehan, D Blake, M Comer, N Coleman, M Donnellan, M Clancy (1-0), C Bane (0-1), J Bergin (0-1), M Meehan (0-2, 1 '45'), P Joyce (0-3 2 frees), S Armstrong (0-1).

Subs: D Dunleavy for Armstrong, B Cullinane for Coleman, K Fitzgerald for Burke, P Clancy for Dunleavy

Referee: P Russell (Tipperary)